Statistical Thinking

Improving Business Performance

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Summary and Path Forward

Appendix B

Presentations and Report Writing

APPENDIX A

ective Teamwork

Itseasytogettheplayers.Gettingemtoplaytogetheristhehardpart.
CaseyStengel
Assoonasyoubegintothinkaboutdoinganimprovementproject,youneedtothink
aboutwhowillbeinvolvedandhowtheworkwillgetdone.Workinginteamsisthemost
effectivewaytodosuchwork,bothintheclassroomandinthebusinessworld.Inclass
projects,teamsbringdifferentinterestsandskillstotheproblem,aswellasreducethe
amountofworktobedonebystudentsandinstructorsalike.Simplyput,betterprojects
areproducedbyteams.ButasCaseyStengel(HallofFamemanageroftheNewYork
Yankees)pointsout,itsnoteasytogetteamstoworktogether.
Peopleinanyorganizationwillbeapartofmanyteams,bothformalandinformal,
throughouttheircareers.Itisrarethatapieceofworkissuccessfullycompletedbya
singleindividualworkingaloneandwithoutinteractingwithanyone.Whenteamsare
appropriate,theworkgetsdonemorequicklywithhigherquality.Thisappendix
providesgeneralsuggestionstoincreasetheprobabilitythatteamswillbesuccessful.
Formoredetailedinformationoneffectiveteams,seethereferencesattheendofthis
appendix.
BENEFITSOFUSINGTEAMS
Effectiveteamworkprovidessignificantbenefitstoboththeorganizationandthe
individualteammembers.Theorganizationgetsacompleteentitythatcollectivelyhas
alltheknowledgeandskillsneededtoimprovetheprocess.Thusaneffectiveteamcan

oftenmakefundamental,lastingprocessimprovement,ratherthanjustpushingthe
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problemfromonedepartmenttoanotherasoftenhappenswithouteffectiveteams.
Theindividualsalsobenefitbylearningfromfellowteammembersaboutotheraspects
oftheprocessorbetterapproachestoproblemsolvingandprocessimprovement.The
poolingofinformationmayeliminatelongstandingheadachesinorganizational
processesthatindividualshavebeenunabletosolveontheirown.
Whenformingateam,considerwhateachteammemberwillgetoutoftheprojectand
howtheorganizationwillbenefit.TeammembersmaywanttoknowWhatsinitfor
me?Inahealthyorganization,however,problemsolvingandprocessimprovementwill
beconsideredpartofthejobandnotextrawork(seeChapter1).Teamsaremost
productivewhenallteammembersgetsomethingsignificantoutoftheeffort.New
experiences,newskills,newacquaintances/friends,broaderresponsibility,and
leadershipexperienceaswellasfinancialrewardsarebenefitsthatoftenaccruefrom
workingonteams.
WHENTOUSEATEAM
Ofcourse,formingateamisnotalwaysthebestapproach.Someactivities,suchas
writingpoetryoranovel,arebestdonebyindividuals.Rarelyhasagreatworkofart
beenproducedbyateam.Ateamshouldbeusedinanysituationinwhichnosingle
personhasthecollectiveknowledge,skills,andexperienceneededtogetthejobdone
effectivelyinthedesiredtimeframe.Followingarekeyissuesthatidentifywhenateam
isneeded.
WhentoUseaTeam
Thetaskiscomplex.
Creativeideasareneeded.
Theproblemcrossesfunctions.
Broadbuyinisneeded.
Implementationinvolvesmanypeople.
Theissueiscontroversial.
Thepathforwardisunclear.
Ateamshouldnotbeusedwhenonepersoncandothejob,unlesstheobjectiveistogive
employeesnewexperiences.Peoplemayasktobeonateamiftheyfeelthattheirviews
willnotbeadequatelyrepresentedbythecurrentmembersoftheteam.Inothercases,
everyonemaywishtojointheteamworkingonahotproject.Onecompanypaid

employeesabonusdependingonhowmanyteamstheyjoined.Predictably,theresult
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wasaproliferationoflargeteamswhichtypicallydonotworkwell.Successresults
whentheteamissmallandincludesamechanismtoseethatallrelevantviewsare
heard.
Inmajorprojects,suchasbuildinganewfacility,acoreteammightoverseetheentire
project,whilenumerousotherteamsworkonindividualtasksassociatedwiththe
project.Thecoreteamsjobistoensurethateachindividualteamisworkingtowardthe
samecommonobjectivethatis,toensureoverallsystemoptimizationversus
functionalsuboptimizationwithineachteam(seeChapter3).Thistieredstructureof
teamsallowsmajorprojectstobeaccomplishedwithfairlysmallteams.
FORMINGATEAM
Businessprocessimprovementistypicallyateamactivitybecausedifferentgroupsare
involvedandareaffected,requiringdifferentbackgroundsandskillstomaketheneeded
improvements.Rarelyisonepersontheexpertontheentirebusinessprocess.Student
projectsworkbestwithtwotofourmembersthreeisanidealteamsize.Studentteams
thatformnaturally,suchasamongexistingfriendsorthoseinthesamedepartmentor
housing,workwell.Whenthisisnotpossible,theinstructorprovidesguidanceonteam
formationaswellasthetopiconwhichtheteamshouldwork.Topicselectionis
discussedinthenextsection.
Inthebusinessworld,teamsoffourtosixpeopleworkbest.Teamsthatincludemore
thansixpeopleoftenslowtheimprovementprocess:Itbecomesdifficulttogettheentire
teamtogetherformeetings,andconsensusistypicallyhardertoachieve.Sometimes
purelyvolunteerteamsareused.Ingeneral,thisisnotagoodpracticebecause
managementsupportisrequiredtogettheneededpersonnel,time,andfundsallocated.
Themakeupoftheteamshouldbebasedontheproblemtobeaddressedandonthe
skillsandknowledgethatwillberequiredtogetthejobdone.
SELECTINGTEAMPROJECTS
Ateamcanbedoomedtofailurebyselectinganinappropriateproject.Forexample,
oftenteamsselectaproblemscopeorobjectivethatismuchtoolargeforthemto
actuallyaccomplishinareasonableamountoftime.Suchprojectsareoftenreferredto
sarcasticallyastryingtosolveworldhungerorboiltheocean.Carefulthoughtneeds
togointoselectionoftheimprovementprojectitself,togivetheteamachanceto
succeed.

Forstudentprojects,wherewemayselecttheteampriortoselectingtheproject,some
keycriteriafortheprojectare:

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Topicisofinteresttoallteammembers.
Situationcanactuallybeaffectedbytheteam.
Scopecanbecompletedinallottedtime.
Dataareavailableinallottedtime.
Issueisimportantpeoplewhoarenotteammemberscareaboutit.
Inshort,goodprojectsareimportant,doable,andrelatableinthattheyhavesignificant
benefittootherthantheteammembers,canbecompletedintheallottedtime,andtheir
significancecanbeunderstoodbyothers.
Awrittenproposalfortheprojectshouldbesubmittedtotheinstructorforapproval
priortobeginningtheproject.Inthebusinessworld,projectsaregenerallyselectedfirst,
andthenteammembersidentified.Itishardtopicktherightteamifwedontknow
whatproblemweareaddressing.Projectsthatcanbecompletedin3to6monthswork
best.Longerprojectsoftendragontoolong,withlittletangiblebenefittoshow
managementgiventhestaffhoursused.Itisimportanttoattachafinancialvaluetothe
projectatanearlystagesothatmanagementcandeterminewhetherthepredicted
benefitsoftheprojectareworththecostofdoingtheproject.
INGREDIENTSFORASUCCESSFULTEAM
Scholtes,Joiner,andStreibeldiscusstheingredientsofasuccessfulteam.Anadaptation
oftheirmodelisshownbelow.

IngredientsofaSuccessfulTeam
Cleargoals
Clearroles
Projectplan
Useofscientificmethodsincludingdata
Welldefineddecisionprocedures
Knowledgeoftheprocessbeingimproved
Problemsolvingskills
Productiveteamdynamics
Clearcommunication
Balancedparticipation

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Followgroundrules
Groupprocessawareness
Payingattentiontotheseingredientsincreasestheprobabilitythattheteamwillbe
successful.Alloftheseelementsneedtobepresentforsuccess.Ignoringevenoneortwo
cangreatlyaffecttheteamssuccess.Forexample,ifeveryonedoesnothavethesame
goals,thenhiddenagendas,politics,andconflictarelikelytoresult.
STAGESOFTEAMGROWTH
Teamstypicallygothroughfourgenericstagesofgrowth:forming,storming,norming,
andperforming.Theteammustfirstformandbegintofunctionasateam.Itmaytakea
whilebeforeteammembersfeelcomfortableworkingtogether.Astheteambeginsto
operatetogether,itwilllikelyhavenumerousissuestoresolve(orstorm):dominant
personalities,lackofunderstandingofteamprocesses,disagreementoverthebest
approachestousefortheproject,andsoon.Inthenormingphase,theteamworks
throughtheseissuesandstartstofunctioneffectively.Bythetimeithasreachedthe
performingphase,theteamisfunctioninglikeawelloiledmachine.Muchofthe
frequentresentmentoverworkingoncommitteesandparticipatinginteamprojectsis
duetoteamsthatnevergetoutofthestormingphase.Thisismorelikelyiftheteam
doesnotconsciouslyfocusoneachoftheelementsofasuccessfulteamlistedabove.
Scholtes,Joiner,andStreibelusedaswimmingmetaphortosummarizethe
characteristicsofeachstageofteamgrowth.

StagesofTeamGrowth
Forming
Hesitantswimmers
Standingbesidethepool
Stickingtoesinthewater
Thinkingaboutgettinginvolved
Storming
Inthewaterthrashingabout
Overwhelmedbytheamountofwork
Littletimetodothework
Doingprojectworkinadditiontoregularduties
Paniccansetin

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Norming
Teammembersgetusedtoworkingtogether.
Teammembersstarthelpingeachother.
Commonspiritandgoalsdevelop.
Teambelievesthattheycanbesuccessful.
Performing
Teammembersbecomecomfortablewitheachother.
Everyoneworksinconcert.
Theteambecomesaneffectiveunit.
Theyunderstandeachothersstrengthsandweaknesses.
Thereisacloseattachmenttotheteam.
Theyresatisfiedwiththeiraccomplishments.
Assessingthestageofgrowththatateamisincangreatlyhelponeunderstandthe
behaviortheteamisexhibitingandidentifywaystogettheteambackontheroadto
success.Teamworkisaprocessthatcanbestudiedandimproved.Dontexpectyour
processtostartoutfunctioningperfectly.
RUNNINGEFFECTIVEMEETINGS
Peoplegenerallydislikemeetingsbecausetheytaketoomuchtimeandaccomplishtoo
little.Theseproblemscanbeavoided,however,withappropriatemeetingmanagement
techniques.Effectivemeetingsarewelldesignedwithapurpose,setofdesired
outcomes,agenda,andwelldefinedroles,listedbelow:
RolesforRunningEffectiveMeetings
MeetingLeader
Isafullyparticipatingteammember
Setstheagenda,withinput
Leadsteamthroughmeetingagenda
Opensmeeting
Opensdiscussionofeachagendaitem
Closesmeeting

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Isaccountableforthemeetingresults
Facilitator
Facilitates(meanstomakeeasier)
Isneutraldoesnotparticipateinmeetingcontent
Helpsteamcometoclosureoneachagendaitem
Helpsteamchooseappropriatedecisionmethods
Keepsdiscussionfocused
Keepsteamontheagenda
Ownsthemeetingprocess
Scribe(mayalsobetheNoteTaker)
Recordskeypointsandideasonflipcharttokeepdiscussionfocused
Isafullyparticipatingteammember
Writeslargeandlegibly
Isbrief,usingfewestwordspossible
Useswordsofthespeakerwheneverpossible(noediting)
Documentsagreements
Updatesactionlistandparkinglotasneeded
NoteTaker/Recorder
Isafullyparticipatingteammember
Keepsrecordsofkeyoccurrencesandcommitments
Workswithteamleadertodevelopanddistributeminutes
Timekeeper
Isafullyparticipatingteammember
Makessureteamkeepstoitsagenda
Hasaclockorwatchavailable
Notifiesmeetingleader5to10minutesbeforeaspecificagendaitemisdueto
end
Notifiesmeetingleaderwhentimehasrunoutsoteamcanreachconsensusto
adjustagendaifnecessary

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Insmallmeetingstheserolesaresometimescombined,withthemeetingleaderactingas
thescribe,notetaker,and/ortimekeeper(althoughtakingontoomanyrolescanresult
inthispersondominatingthemeeting).Thescribesometimesalsoservesasthenote
taker/reporter.Whenanorganizationbecomesmorefamiliarwithusingthesemeeting
roles,themeetingparticipantswilloftenvolunteerfortheneededroles.Aneutral
facilitatorisoftenneededtohelptheteamgetthroughthestormingstage.Onceit
reachestheperformingstage,thisroleisoftendropped.
Duringmeetings,itishelpfultohaveanactionlistpostedtocaptureassignments,
includingactionitems,responsibleperson,andtimeforcompletionornextreport.This
ensuresthatsomethingtangiblecomesoutofthemeeting.Thenextmeetingtypically
beginswithareviewofthestatusoftheactionitemsfromthelastmeeting.Aparking
lotisawaytocaptureimportantideasthatareofftheagenda,butarenonetheless
worthyoftheteamsattention.Theparkinglotitemsareusuallyaddressedattheendof
themeeting.Payingattentiontotheserolesusuallyresultsinveryproductivemeetings
andinwillingparticipationbyteammembersbecausesomuchusefulworkis
accomplished.Amoredetaileddiscussionofhowtoruneffectivemeetingscanbefound
inTheTeamMemoryJogger 4 orDoyleandStraus.

DEALINGWITHCONFLICT
Conflictoftenoccursamongteammembers,especiallyinthestormingstage.Someways
fordealingwithconflictfromTheTeamMemoryJoggerare:

DealingwithConflict
AvoidConflictbyBeingObjective
Stayfocusedonthesubject,notthepeopleinvolved.
Trytounderstandtheotherpersonspointofview.
Avoidjudgmentalandinflammatorylanguage.
HandlingDisagreements
Decisionsarebuiltonaseriesofsmallagreements.
Worktofindareasofagreement.
Buildonareasofagreement.
Identifyareasofagreementanddisagreement.
Listencarefullyandcheckforunderstanding.

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DealingwithFeuds
Keepthemeetingfocusedontheworkoftheteam,notthefeud.
Recognizethatafeudmayhavestartedlongago.
Helptheteammoveforwardinspiteofthefeud.
Worktokeepthefeudingpartiesfromdominatingthemeeting.
Ensurethatthefeudishandledoutsidethemeeting.
Thekeytoavoidingconflictistostayfocusedontheworkoftheteam,listenandidentify
areasofagreement,andavoidpersonalissuesstayobjective.Buildontheareasof
agreement,howeversmall,thathelptheteambesuccessful.Decisionsareusuallybuilt
onsuchsmallagreements.
Ofcourse,peoplewilloftenhavedifferencesofopinion,eveniftheteamfollowsallthis
goodadvice.Afterall,diversityofopinionandknowledgewasoneofthereasonswe
formedateaminthefirstplace.However,onecandisagreewithoutbeingdisagreeable.
Thisavoidsfeudsbetweenmembersthatbecomedistractionstotheteam.Ofteniftwo
knowledgeable,intelligentpeopledisagree,differentassumptionsorbeliefsareatthe
rootoftheirdisagreement.Probingforthesefundamentaldifferencesmayhelpfocusthe
disagreementandallowtheteamtoeithermakeanobjectivedecisionordecidetoobtain
moredatatoresolvetheassumptions.
WHYPROJECTTEAMSFAIL
Thereasonsforprojectteamfailure(identifiedbySnee,Kelleher,andReynardfroma
studyofmorethan70projects)aresummarizedbelow. 7 Notethatthemajorityofthe
reasonsidentifiedaremanagementrelated.
ReasonsforTeamFailure
Teamisnotsupportedbymanagement.
Nochampionidentified.
Championdoesnotmeetwithteam.
Projectscopeistoolarge.
Projectobjectivesarenotsignificant.
Noclearmeasureofsuccessisidentified.
Teamisnotgivenenoughtimetoworkonproject.

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Teamistoolarge.
Teammembershavemultipleagendas.
Teamisnottrained.
Dataarenotreadilyavailable.
Attentiontotheseitemsincreasestheprobabilitythatyourprojectwillbesuccessful.
Theabilitytouseteamstomanageandimproveanorganizationisaskillthatmustbe
developedbybothmanagersandemployees.Teamsrequireguidance,coaching,
counseling,training,recognition,andreinforcement.However,successfulteamworkcan
radicallyimproveorganizationalperformanceandemployeegrowth,sotheeffort
requirediswellworthmaking.
NOTES
1.R.D.Snee,DealingwiththeAchillesHeelofSixSigmaProjectSelectionIstheKeytoSuccess,QualityProgress(March2001),
6672.
2.P.R.Scholtes,B.L.Joiner,andB.J.Streibel,TheTeamHandbook,3rded.(Madison,WI:JoinerAssociates,2003).
3.Ibid.
4.GOAL/QPC&JoinerAssociates,TheTeamMemoryJogger(Madison,WI:1996).
5.M.DoyleandD.Straus,HowtoMakeMeetingsWork(NewYork:JoveBooks,1982).
6.GOAL/QPC&JoinerAssociates,TheTeamMemoryJogger.
7.R.D.Snee,K.H.Kelleher,andS.Reynard,ImprovingTeamEffectiveness,QualityProgress(May1998),4348.

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